First of all, please allow me to mention, I’ve been black for a very long time now, also been a black American for quite some time (foreign born), but I really don’t know what in reality is a black leader. Or, for that matter, why is there even the need for us to have a “black leader”, if in fact there is actually such an individual.
You see, I’m aware of the educational and socio-economic accomplishments of Asian Americans, Irish Americans, Jewish Americans, West-Indian Americans, Africans from the continent, and every other ethnic group in this nation for that matter. However, I’m not aware of any of those groups ever having any “leader” in order for them to capitalize on the unprecedented opportunities available in this great country and become successful.
Too many black Americans seem to believe that they must have a “leader” looking out for their interest in order for them to succeed in this society. Is this really the case? I seriously doubt that. What is commonly referred to in the black community, and further validated by white liberals in the press, as our so-called black “leaders” ( Al Sharpton, Jessie Jackson, venal black politicians et al), are shameless race hustlers that play on the guilt of white liberals.
Amid rumblings that President Obama has not done enough for the black community, he is scheduled to meet in the White House today with 4 prominent “black leaders”. They are Benjamin Jealous of the NAACP, Marc Moriel of the National Urban League, Dr. Dorothy Height of the National Council of Negro Women, and race hustler extraordinaire Al Sharpton of the National Action Network. Those folks intend to persuade the President to switch funds from the TARP allocation to create jobs for the hard core unemployed in our urban centers….black ghetto areas. Hopefully Obama will resist those efforts at balkanizing our society thereby prolonging residual racial disharmony. Our President should only promote policies that provide equal employment opportunity for all Americans.
Can this or any administration really do anything to alleviate the dismal conditions that some in our urban center are now experiencing? I seriously doubt that. As a matter of fact, one may successfully argue that it has been government policies in the first place that led to most of those social maladies.
By providing blinding support for the NEA, liberal politicians provide support for school systems that deliver an inferior education to inner-city youths. Undereducatd blacks will obviously have difficulty in finding meaningful jobs. Employers are reluctant to locate businesses in high crime areas where respect for private property is non-existent. Any transition from the lower to the middle or upper class is totally dependent on the things we do for ourselves.
The American society in this twenty-first century is radically different from the days of the institutional racism that existed a mere 3 generations ago. With the passage of the ciivil and voting rights laws during the 60s, we are now free to walk to the valley, and allowed to drink from the spring on our own. If we set proper priorities, focus on personal responsibility and individual achievement, respect the law, stop creating self-inflicted wounds with excessive pathologic behavior, the vast majority of blacks could easily achieve socio-economc parity just like every other ethnic or racial group in this society. As a matter of fact, a significant amount of blacks have already done that.
White racism is no longer an impediment to black achievement. It is simply not a “white thing” to be smart in school, or even cool to “keep it real in the hood”. President Obama would do the nation a great favor by telling those “leaders” today to go home, look in the mirror, tell our people to first do what they could do for themselves, then come back to me so we could see what other pieces we could fit into this complex puzzle.
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